‘Significant challenges’ recruiting and retaining care workers in Nottinghamshire

The county’s social care market is operating with a staff turnover rate of about 30 per cent as people leave the sector to join other areas like shop work on better pay.

Earlier this year, the council approved a £1 per hour uplift to care providers to incentivise people to stay in the sector, while work has been taking place with education providers and job fairs have been held to encourage more people to take up a career in care.

Kashif Ahmed, council service director for integrated strategic commissioning and service improvement, said: “Recruitment and retention is a significant challenge within the care sector due to the wider challenges in the economy.

“In recent weeks and months, the system has stabilised.

“However, it’s unpredictable and we’re heading towards winter, when we expect further challenges in the workforce.

“Recruitment and retention is one of the key points for us, but what we haven’t seen is a growth or increase in capacity, so providers struggle to recruit.

“That’s a consistent feature and not isolated to Nottinghamshire – most local authorities are facing these difficulties.”

Melanie Brooks, council corporate director for social care and public health, added: “We have 24,000 care workers and, at the moment, we think we’ve got about a 30 per cent turnover.

“We are starting to work more closely with colleges to create a pathway and need to look at selling care as a career.

"It is a career of value and I don’t think that pathway is sold.”